The Likos, The Kyon, and Fate
by Eli H. Lee
Summary: A likos, a wolf, is often not a welcoming sight for humans. A kyon, a dog, however is. Fate though will always strikes at odd times and Steele has started to learn that lesson.
1. Chapter 1

Everything and everyone belongs to their rightful owners. OCs belong to me in the end. No ifs, ands, or buts. Warning, there will be the f- bomb.

Leopard the Warrior of Africa

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It was a cold winter's night as he walked through Nome's streets, his white paws making almost no sound through the snow. His ice blue eyes focused on the out that sat just outside of town, closest to the now dead woods. His jet black fur, now coating with the falling snow, kept him safe from the cold as he kept heading towards his destination. As everyone in this town, this once sled race champion was Steele, a once proud Alaskan malamute who craved fame and popularity and was now hated by all of the other canines in Nome. ("Why?" you may ask. Well if you're asking that, why the hell are you reading a fan story on the Balto movie if you haven't watched the Balto movie?) His punishment was that now. For what he did, he got the opposite of what he wanted. Steele was now shamed, without friends, the bottom of the pack pile (pun intended), and was left with no more than what was left with his dignity.

But… he still wasn't alone. He still had his owner (who was REALLY disappointed in him), he was on a new sled team (he used to be in the back, but he's managed to make his way up to at least the middle), and then there's his "lean-on," which was why he was out here, almost near the middle of the night, heading to the outmost house in Nome.

_Why the fuck am I still doing this?_ Steele yelled this question mentally to himself. _She's nothing special, if anything she's as bad as I was. This is all just getting in the way of me getting back on top. _

He reached the fence and looked around for the broken plank that always lead into the yard. While doing this, a little, not much noticeable part of his head replied back. _**Because you have no other choice. **_

_Yes I do, I can just turn around and go back to my warm dog bed right now! In fact, why don't I do that right now!?_

_**Because you're addicted. It's like catnip to a cat, you keep coming back but you can only stand being around the cause of the high for only so long. **_He found the opening and squeezed through. _I 'm NOT addicted. I just… __**Can't stop coming back. Have no one else to turn to. She may not like you, just like everyone else hates you, but she still listens. **__Oh please, I can find some other mutt to talk all this stuff out. __**True, but then that mutt would tell someone else. **__…. Shut Up. _He climbed up the steps that led up to the back door before taking in a calm, deep, breath. _**You couldn't even avoid the addiction in the first place. **__Hey, I COULD have avoided her, I could have! I even considered it when I first saw that moving truck! __**But would you have avoided if you could go back? **_Steele closed his closed his eyes at that thought. Boy, did he remember that all too well. All too well enough that it probably was nowhere near good.

_How was I supposed to know that she was like that? Huh? I thought she was just another pathetic little wolf dog that moving in! I didn't expect for a full blown on wolf that was confused for a dog! __**You didn't answer the question. **__I…__** You wouldn't would you? You would go through this addiction of coming out here and talking to her all over again. **__I hate you, you know that? __**You know that means you're hating yourself.**__ Shut up! _

"Steele?"

Steele opened his eyes to look at the huge, well-built female in front of him. Her fur was a medium brown with a mix of dark tan, with her underbelly being a very light brown cream that was almost white and the area around her almond shaped bright blue-green eyes looking like a dark grey to pencil black. Around her neck was a dark green ribbon her old owner uses as her collar. On her nose bridge were four scars while on her front right leg, almost on her paw was a big scar. If one was to take only one look at her, like Steele had at first the moment she and her owner had moved into Nome, they would have thought of her as either a really large dog mutt or a wolf dog at best. Many of the other dogs even thought she was at most a wolf dog, not the full blown she-wolf she really was. Steele stared at her for a moment as he tried to get his thoughts together. He had never thought her as a beauty, not when he first saw her, and defiantly not now. She wasn't even pretty by many dog standards, in fact she was considered very unappealing. He did wonder though, were those scars really from badgers like she told him the first and only time he asked? What was the name her pack gave her when she was still living in the woods?

_Why am I even bothering myself with these thoughts?_

"Steele, what's bringing you here this time? Sonya's not giving you enough credit you think you deserve again? You know we've both talked about that. You keep giving yourself too much to glorify about," she chuckled, giving a smile that almost made Steele chuckle as well. _She's always has been the only one I know to not look good smiling. _He focused on the lower tooth that always stuck out while she was quiet, which was usually most of the time as her mouth turned into an unamused frown. "Seriously, what's going on now?"

"Ayana… I… um." He didn't even know what her owner had been thinking when he had named this female in front of him "beautiful flower."

"What? Come on, spit it out."

"I must be a snowflake, because I've fallen for you." He put on his best smile, trying to look as charming as he used to in his "glory-hound" days. Ayana looked at him unamused still to an untrained eye, but he could see the struggling of a smile at the corner of her mouth.

"And this is why that pipsqueak bloodhound said no to a date."

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Ok, I want to state that, YES I seriously, for real, just had Steele flirt with a wolf. Not even a wolf dog, a wolf. Get over it.

Before any of you decide that my oc Ayana here (yes I know, cruel of me to name her that) is any Mary-Sue character, (because no matter how many people there are who reads a story, there will always be one saying out Mary Sue in either review, mind, or in a loud, public mall center, or all of the above) I have put her through Mary Sue tests. I have redesigned her character over and over again. I have yet to get her to the point of over 5. I have not ever had her reach 5. (and yes I am bothering with this.)

For those of you who want to know how everyone in town(s) thinks she is a dog or half dog, first of, everyone in town…. Were you not reading the chapter above?

What about a vet? What about her owner? One and same question. For one thing, her owner is an old man who's a vet with a son who's a hunter (yeah, yeah, yeah, irony there. Ha-ha.) One of them is going to know and tell the other. And I have looked this up for this story, you can own a wolf and/or wolf dog in Alaska, if you have a permit. (Apparently, Nevada's the only state where it's a state law that owning a wolf is legal. Wolf dogs not a problems for some of the other states, just the whole wolf thing. It's still pretty safe to own a permit in many cases.) So yes, I did do the research, BOTH her owner and his son both have a permit for owning her, they might tell the _some _of the town about it later. Please don't bug me about it.

As for the story? I hate to admit this, but I might be going on a bunch of one shots that are just tagged along in some way. Some of us have to admit it now and then though that a stream of one shots can be made into its own story. So, please review, if you have any ideas you can to post or questions that don't involve how a wolf can be owned in Alaska, go ahead and post it.


	2. Chapter 2

Again, I only own OCs.

Leopard the Warrior of Africa

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"Come on Steele! You're slowing us down!"

Steele just growled as he pushed forward, trying to gain up speed with the rest of the team. In front of him were three other sled dogs, Tenino, Tupit, Sonya, and Alpha, while behind him where the twins Salina and Coal. The twins were black huskies with blue collars and the only difference besides gender was that Salina had brown eyes and Coal had orange eyes. Tupit was a brown American husky with darker brown eyes with a green collar while Tupit was a large purebred Saint Bernard with blue eyes and a red collar. Sonya was a perky black malamute female with brown eyes and a violet collar, in front of her being Alpha, a Chow-Chow/Husky mix with amber brown eyes and a ginger and white coat. Beside Steele was a small male husky named Toby with gray fur, blue eyes, and a tan collar.

"Steele! Hurry up! They're catching up on us!"

Steele looked to the dog sled that was starting to pass by them, his ice blue eyes glaring at the feet of the competition. "They're not gonna be for long…." He growled before biting at a random rival dog, one of the oldest tricks in his racing book that he used. The dog naturally tried, and cause that team to fall over each other as a result.

It was only a matter of around 10 and 20 minutes until the team entered town and crossed the finish line. The moment the dogs were let out of their harnesses, Alpha was glaring down at Steele in an alleyway. Beside him, Sonya stood by as the rest of the team went off.

"Vhat have I told you about ze dirty trick, Steele?" Alpha growled, his thick fur on the back of his neck bristling, making his look very much like a husky patterned bear. Steele glared back, putting on his usual sneer, stating, "If I didn't use it, Alpha, we would have lost the race."

"Or you could have just quickened your pace, and there would have been no cheating necessary," Sonya barked, her voice sharp. Alpha glanced at her before glaring back at Steele. "Well Missy, sorry that I happened to not be fast enough for today's pace."

"You keep zis up, pretty boy, you get off team. No matter reason." Alpha's growl was followed by a stomp on Steele's foot before the male canine left. Steele sneered again, his eyes narrowed as he went to leave the alleyway as well before Sonya's words stopped him.

"You're not the same mighty purebred you were, Steele." Sonya walked past him, grinning as her small paws padded past him. "Welcome to the Underdogs, where you are now almost nothing if it weren't for Toby and Tupit being to forgiving and trustful while also being able to pull a few strings." Steele turned his head quickly at that, furiously thinking if he should attack. "Oh, you thought you got on the team due to your 'skills'? Sorry, Inky, but I have crash your little dream."

…..

"And then that little witch goes ahead and said that the gray mutt and giant spotted bear just pulled some loose strings to get me on the team just because they took pity on me!"

Steele paced furiously back and forth as he snarled all this to Ayanna. They were a bit outside of town, far enough that Ayanna could smell the nearby forests while Steele was close enough to town to feel his usual self. Ayanna laid down on her side as she watched the purebred in this state and waited until he was breathing more normally before speaking. "Tupit and Toby were probably thinking that you deserved another chance at racing. You should take this opportunity to turn around on your life. Figuratively saying of course," she spoke lifting her head from her paws. Steele huffed as he looked to her before he resumed pacing.

"Easy for you to say. You were never there, as per usual when all of this happens."

"Even if I was there, Steele, if I was to see you and your team's alpha male and female having a talk with you, I still only observe and leave it until you came to me." Steele glared over at her and walked towards Ayanna. "Should I even ask why on that?" The she-wolf turned her right ear slightly as she looked at him. Getting up she shook her fur to get rid of the snow that stuck to it and took a moment of silence and think. Steele spoke up again.

"Let me guess, so I could learn my 'lesson' from Mr. Big and In Charge and his little missy, or is it because you always seem to have it in your head that I started it first?" Ayanna glanced over at him, her expression blank as usual.

"Well, didn't you use what Alpha called 'ze dirty trick'?" she asked, tilting her head. Steele growled and stepped forward, barking, "Hey look, they wanted to win as much as I did. I was doing them a favo- wait…" Ayanna waited as Steele thought at that moment. "How did you..? You were there! You did see Alpha and Sonya having a talk with me!"

"I said 'if.' I never did say I was not there."

"Why you little-"

"'Little?' Sonya is 'little,' Steele, not I. I never understand when you say that to me. You and I are practically the same height."

"THAT DOESN'T MATTER!" Steele yelled, his breathing becoming heavily. Like before, Ayanna waited for his breathing to come down. "Why wouldn't… no, why _**didn't **_you do anything?" The brown wolf's eyes looked away as the male malamute still glared at her.

"I've learned it's usually not best to meddle in conversations that alphas have privately with their pack mates," she said focusing her gaze at the snow. Steele's glare lightened up a little and he sighed, finally sitting down.

"You seriously need to stop comparing us sled dogs and our teams with those old wolf packs of yours, Ayanna," he said, before looking towards town. His own icy glaze caught many of the other dogs walking around town and noticed few of them stopping and looking at something, hoping the sight wasn't Ayanna and himself. _Why do I even bother still? _

"Maybe you should have a wider mind on things in life." Steele looked back at his frie- no, '_talk-to lean-on acquaint' _and shook his head.

"That wouldn't make me talk to you then, would it?" he replied, added his usual sneer into it before laying down in the snow. Ayanna huffed and stretched.

"Oh, that would depend, my _illamar_." Ayanna's gaze was back to him, this time accompanied by an uneasy smile and her walking back towards town. "Come on, your 'fans' are glancing this way." Steele scrunched up his face as if he ate something sour and followed her back to town. As they entered, Steele flicked his ears away from the other dogs and refused to look at any of them as he went back home.

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Nothing more to say than… please review.


	3. Chapter 3

Again, I only own Ocs.

Leopard the Warrior of Africa (btw, might change my pen name sometime soon. Any ideas for a new one?)

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"So, what was the point of all that?"

Steele looked back at Ayanna when she asked this, the two of them going back to town after having a small race in the woods. He smirked and held his head high. "I wanted to see if you were any threat." Ayanna's usual unamused expression didn't change.

"For what?" she asked, now only raising an eyebrow.

"In case you ever decided to take up sled racing. And it is very clear you are no such threat."

"Why would I even _want _race with more of your disgusting kind? I can tolerate you, but I'd prefer it if everyone just left me alone," she stated, trotting up beside him. Steele looked at her wide eyed at this.

"Well, for one, a sled is practically part of a dog's life in Nome. There's very few who sled dogs aren't after all. Racing comes as second nature after that," he said, only getting an eye roll from the scarred up wolf. "The rush of it all, and to lead the team, to cross over the finish line in first place! The adrenaline rushing through your veins as you keep coming on top! And you just going up in the ranks, up in the being the lead dog of the most successful racing team in all of Nome!" Ayana's expression turned from annoyance and unamused to concern as Steele went rambling on. "You start to feel invincible! You feel as if nothing can ever get by you! Nothing can take you by surprise! You become the practical lead dog on the entire town in the mindset!"

"And then you go down once your ego gets too high for you to check up on," she said, examining Steele's expression carefully. The words had seemed to wake Steele up to reality. The whole mindset, the whole memory of being malamute he had once been, the top dog, the one who could have any mate he wanted, the Steele that won every race and challenge set out in front of him, was just that now. A memory thanks to his choice on the serum run on not accepting Balto's help. Now, he was just Steele, Nome's outcast, and working to reach the top all over again. His expression changed from glee and joy to sadness and, for the first time in a long while, regret. He turned his head away, no longer holding it high in dignity.

Ayanna nudged him a bit before sitting down. Steele looked at her and laid down. "So, um…" Ayanna looked around as she spoke. "What were your parents like?" Steele gave her a questioning look, not understanding the change of subject. "Why does this have to do with anything?" he asked, earning a '_just go with it_' look from her.

"Well, since most of the town thinks I'm either a wolf-dog or just a plain, wild looking dog like yourself and others, I might as well know how parents act with their pups."

Steele shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Well, my mother was a pretty red and white malamute…"

"Explains a lot about your attraction to Jenna."

"Oh shut it. Anyways, she was a sled race dog and she would always tell me and my littermates what it was like and how amazing it was. She wasn't her team's lead dog in anyway, but it was just great every time she let us watch her and her team practice. She would always give me baths, and let me eat the leftovers, and play with my favorite blanky that I called Chewy…"

"You had a blanket you called Chewy?" Ayanna asked, giggling at the thought of the giant malamute cuddling up on a tiny blanket used to wrap a puppy in.

"I was teething! It was very soft too. My younger sister Eze and I would always fight over it until Mother settled that problem," Steele huffed turning his head away with his nose in the air. "Who would often win until she stepped in?" the female nest to him asked, smiling just to give him the creeps. Steele's ears went back and he started to look embarrassed.

"Eze would…."

Ayanna burst out laughing at that, making Steele give a slight a look of shock as he turned his head to her. He had only heard her laugh once before and that was when they had first met. His surprise quickly turned into annoyance as he quickly turned his head away. "It's not funny…."

"You lost to your baby sister over a blanket!? That's just… that is just tragically hilarious!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, big deal. Now will you stop rubbing it in?" Ayanna placed a paw to her mouth, careful not to scratch it against her bottom tooth that always stuck out and quieted down her laughter to little giggles. Steele continued on. "Either way, I spent a lot of time with my mother and the only thing I got from her was her eyes." The black and white canine smiled at the thought. "She would always brag about that to my father. He always claimed that most of my littermates and I took so such of our looks from him, heck, two of my brothers and one of my sisters looked just like lighter copies of him, but Mother always said that her eyes got past down to me and some of my sisters." Ayanna's laughter quieted down fully now as she smiled truly at the thoughtful expression on Steele's face.

"My father on the other hand... err… paw, was a black and white malamute, with the darkest brown eyes I can ever remember seeing in my life. Now **he** was the lead sled dog on his team when Mother wasn't telling us about her sled team when we asked about it, he would always brag it. I guess you could say that I … might have gotten a bit of his showiness, I suppose."

"'Might have'?"

"Ok, ok, I inherited a lot from my father!" Steele said, pushing Ayanna's side in a teasing jester. "Besides that, it was mostly only my Mother that was involved with raising my littermates and I. My father often visited and about at eight weeks old or so we were sold to our new families with Mother visiting us often and Father just… stopped." Silence filled the air between the two of them as Ayanna processed all this in her mind while Steele thought through his entire puppyhood before shaking his head and looking at Ayanna again. "So, what about your parents?"

The wolf looked at him before averting her eyes. "Oh come on, I told you about mine, you might as well tell me about yours," Steele barked, rolling onto his back out of boredom.

"Naturally both of my parents were wolves and I had a brother and a sister. My father was a pale tan colored wolf with a bluish gray underbelly and the usual golden amber eyes which both my brother and sister got and my mother had black fur, light gray underbelly and bluish eyes. I was raised like any wolf pup, mostly by the pack and elders. As for any family moments, I spent a lot of time with my father while my brother and sister spent more time with my mother. It wasn't any preference really. It was just easier for us to adapt to our roles in the pack that way." Steele looked confused and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Why? What roles?"

Ayanna laid down onto her stomach and placed her head on her large paws. "My mother was what the pack called a den mother, someone who was often looked upon like a … um… midwife you could say, as well as someone who takes in pups that other mother wolves can't care for as their own anymore and sets up a role of what most new mother look up to. My sister became one herself as well as a mother like any other den mother. My brother was considered nimble, therefore more of a scout-built image. That and he often related with my mother since he was always an Omega type wolf," she explained.

"And you?" Steele asked.

"Well, I was the biggest and tougher one of the three of us back then, had no interest in being a mother as a yearling, and my father was also a rather big wolf, so he helped me train to become one of the warriors for the pack. I hunted, I fought, and I relied on my strength to help keep the pack alive. Simple as that," she said, glaring at the snowy hills in the distance. Steele rolled back onto his stomach, his icy eyes trying to meet her blue-green ones.

"You said you had no interest in being a mother as a _yearling_. You changed your mind sometime later?" he asked, lifting his head in curiosity. Ayanna's expression soften as she closed her eyes and sighed. Steele got up and walked around to meet her face. "Ayanna?"

"A litter of three males and one female. The female was a dark brown color with a slightly lighter brown underbelly while one of the males was gray with a white underbelly. Another male was a medium, reddish brown with a pale white underbelly, and the last male was the darkest brown with a light blue gray underbelly." Ayanna smiled for a small moment, almost unnoticeable if Steele hadn't be studying her expression. "Their father had a very dark, almost black blue gray fur with a medium gray underbelly… he had faded hazel eyes… only the gray male had his eye color. The female and the reddish brown male had my eye color, but faded like her father's. Only the last male, the biggest one in fact, had true, non-faded blue eyes." Steele sat down, his mind taking this all in.

"Their names? The father? What happened?"

"I never named them. My sister did, and the father never knew. He died to illness. In fact, only my mother, my sister, and I who even knew of my pregnancy. My sister had a litter of her own shortly before mine, and I already had enough of the pity party everyone gave me, and the pack often degraded pups that were without one or both parents. My sister was to go to her mate's pack when her pups were able to travel, so I thought 'Maybe it would be best if they went with her to never be look down upon.' She already had a daughter that looked just like my biggest son but with only faded blue eyes. And the rest who have been thought to have inherited a grandparent's fur color. No one else would be the wiser. Once the pups were all ready to travel, my sister went to her mate's pack with them… and that was it."

Ayanna sighed deeply and stared at her paws. "Haven't you ever thought of going back to see what they've become now?" Steele asked, nudging the side of her face with his nose. "Haven't you ever thought of finally telling them the truth once you had the chance?" Ayanna looked at his, her eyes narrowed.

"No… it'd be best if I never went back, Steele."

"What about your father? Your brother? Shouldn't they know? Since, I don't know, your father's the grandfather and your brother's the uncle?"

"If it was earlier, maybe. But it's too late now. If I went back there to tell them, not only would I shame them for deceiving them for so long but to reveal what I am now? A scared up ex-fighter who is now living under a human's roof? I would be disgracing my father, my mother, my ancestors… if I went back and revealed all of this."

"Ayanna…"

"No Steele." Ayanna stood up, her and Steele's eyes meeting. "I can't… even if I wanted to."

They both stood silent for a moment, the tension passing with each minute. Ayanna gave up on staring and began walking back to town, with Steele soon following her. "So, just by any chance… what was your name back in the pack?"

Ayanna glanced at him before softening her gaze. "Aklark. My parents thought I looked so much like a brown bear at first that they thought it was perfect."

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Yeah…. About all of that, um, I wanted to clarify on what I thought Steele's parents were like and what Ayanna's life in her old wolf pack was like. And I'm sorry if Steele seemed OOC near the end, but given the fact that trying to write him like that and still stick with his character is tough. As for Steele's little speech on sled racing, I thought it fit him. He's always occurred to me as someone who, while being a sore loser and who will do anything to keep winning, would be passionate about what he does. And Steele is a sled dog who races. Whenever I see the beginning of Balto where Steele uses his cheating trick to win, when he makes that tired yet determined smile when he glances back to where the sled racer is yelling his name, I see someone who loves what he does, even if he cheats his way there, and I wanted to bring that side of Steele I saw as a kid and even now out in this chapter. And as for Steele's parents, I got tired of seeing fan versions of a female black malamute or husky with blue eyes as his mother and I wanted to add my two cents. As for Ayanna, I added a lot of her telling her parents and her pups to not give any tragic past (and if I was to give Ayanna a tragic past on purpose this would be rated M and everyone in this story would be a furry) but to also add to her character. As for her birth name being Aklark… that actually came from drawing her so many times. Any time I drew her or thought about her, it always make her look very big, very furry, and her original designed had her have more rounded ears that made her look much like a bear. And since her fur color was a shade of brown, it just made sense for her name to mean "brown bear." Sorry for the ramble, thank you for reading, and please review.


	4. Chapter 4

Again, I only own OCs. This chapter, just for the change of pace for a moment, is focused mostly on Ayanna and her mind set.

Leopard the Warrior of Africa

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Ayanna walked back towards town with an Artic hare in her mouth. She knew she didn't need to hunt now as a pet, but it still felt nice to go and do something to remind her of her roots. Besides, her owner's son was visiting soon and it would be a nice gift for him. Her paws upturned the deep snow as she held her head high, as if she was showing someone her prize proudly. _**Well, aren't you starting to act like a glory-girl. **__Oh please, I am acting nothing of the sort. __**Seems like Steele's starting to rub off on you.**__ He is not! I just happened to like holding my prey this way when carrying it. __**Keep telling yourself that. **_

Ayanna perked one of her ears up at the scent of other wolves. Sniffing, she turned her head towards it and looked to the hillside to see a small pack of about three or four looking back at her. Her ears fell flat against her fur as she met their gaze. Their amber stares made her uneasy, as if looking down on her for now acting as some human's pet. And to be true, she was now, wasn't she? And yet…

The conversation between her and Steele from a few weeks ago lit up in her head, her mind beginning to think on it all. _I could go back, probably make up some lie and be welcomed to the pack…__** Oh sure, as if that would work! **__Ok, so maybe not my original pack! Maybe... Maybe I should see what's become of Ada's and my pups. See where our litters got to in life. __**And what would happened when someone realizes of your pups among hers? What you say to them? Steele's getting too much thought into your head on this. **__Well, probably, but… __**And what would happen when YOUR probably-full-grown pups ask about their true father? What would you tell them about Siku? **__Enough! _

Ayanna looked away, closing her eyes and walking on and away from the other wolves. Their scents faded and she carried on back home. The she-wolf stopped for a second at the outskirts of town before looking back. The wolves were almost out of sight except for a familiar looking large dark brown male with a bluish gray underbelly who stared back at her before returning to the rest of his pack. She stood there, waiting to see if they were turn back at well before giving up and going into her yard. She dug up some of the snow and what was left of loose dirt before dropping the dead rabbit into it and burying it up. Ayanna sighed as she sat down, ignoring the cold wind that was blowing through her fur. _What would I tell them? _She thought, unsure of what she would actually say.

_**Everything you probably still remember of him. **_

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Sorry that this was short, I really was just satisfied with how this ended the way it and couldn't think how to continue this chapter. I hope you like it and please review.


	5. Chapter 5

I only own OCs… Warning: French/Quebec accent character within chapter!

Eli H. Lee (finally got a new pen name)

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"I of course know you vere getting desperate for zee _Mademoiselles, _Steele, but you choose zee one who is, how do you say? No looker?" Tenino had approached Steel that day as the malamute was waiting outside the store for his owner to come out. The brown husky smirked as Steele glared at him.

"What the heck are you talking about, Frenchy?" he asked, sitting up and scratching the back of his ears. Tenino's face turned into a sneer at the comment, barking, "I am not French! I am Canadian! But of course, you vould not dare care to tell zee difference. Nor admit of you and _Mademoiselle _Ayanna being friendly."

"Friendly?"

"Zee little walks outside of zee town, zee talks, oh, and of course zee rumors zee _Mademoiselles _are spreading through town of you two. Why, one can only assume zee connection, but it is a good connection, no _Monsieur?_" Tenino's smirk returned quickly at this as Steele paused in the middle of scratching. The malamute turned his head quickly to growl lowly at his fellow team-mate.

"There is nothing going on between me and vet's pet, nor is there ever going to be. And you can tell the rest of those little gossipers to cut it out!" Steele's glare didn't seem to affect the husky in front of him as Tenino just kept smirking as he trotted past him.

"It is alright, Steele. Yours and _Mademoiselle_ Ayanna's secret is safe with _moi!_"

Steele sighed as he shook his head. Laying back down, the malamute continued to wait for his owner to come out of the store as he processed the entire conversation over again. _He's going to tell everyone he knows, I'm sure of it. Why the heck would anyone think that I would be interested in the wolf anyway? They all know I actually LIKE pretty females at least. __**Have faith in Tenino yet, glory-boy. You turn that ego down a bit. But you have to give him credit, he and those gossipy ones aren't stupid. You and Ayanna always do spend time alone together. **__Yeah right, but she's just someone I can relate to at the moment. She won't need me the more this town accepts her. And I won't need her once I get to the top again, above even Alpha and Sonya. __**Oh? Keep telling yourself that, because that's not what's going to happen. **__What makes you say that? __**You'll see when it hits you.**_

* * *

Ok, again, a short chapter, but I really do love little tidbits. Also, I realized that in the chapter where I first introduced the team Steele was one, I ended up with two descriptions for Tony. The brown American husky was supposed to be Tenino. I wanted to clear that up. And another thing about Tenino, since Alpha had a Russian accent, I gave Tenino a Quebec/French accent. Why? Because I could, I did, and I didn't want only one foreign country accent to be in Nome. That and I cannot write an English accent. I'm sorry, I've tried, but I couldn't do it. I also took two years of French class so it was an actually easy accent to do once I got a little more information behind the Quebec accent. Please review!


	6. Chapter 6

I only own OCs, and I am sorry for the long wait.

Eli H. Lee

* * *

They were still here. He had no idea why she even went to see if they had moved on away from the town, but the dang wolf pack from before was still here. Steele rolled his eyes mentally as he followed Ayanna to this pack she had seen a few days earlier. _Who knows, maybe she's thinking of leaving.__** Oh well, if that happens, consider yourself doomed there.**__ Shut up! _

"So why are we doing this? I thought you already let go of your past," he asked, probably for the tenth time that trip. The she-wolf next to him sighed, like the first ten times, before answering the same.

"This is my final way of saying good-bye to it."

Silence went over them again as Steele looked around the forest. Spring was surprisingly late this year, as the snow was still thick and the wind was still cold and blowing today. The only thing he could tell that spring was either here or coming was because of the small flower buds and plants that have manage to dig themselves out of the snow. The pack itself was near a bunch of rocks near the edge of the forest they had just entered. The malamute bumped into Ayana's side when she stopped.

"Excuse me?"

All six wolves looked up at the two of them, making Steele a bit unsure of himself all of a sudden. The confusion on some of their faces were similar to the one Ayanna had once gave him when they had first met. If it hadn't been for that memory though, he would have wondered why like anyone else would have. Sadly, he very much remembered and he was not stupid. Steele knew, and had felt very insulted back then when he had first realized it, that if he didn't have his collar on, he looked very much like a well-groomed wolf to other wolves.

One of the older males, an old grey and white wolf with dark brownish hazel eyes, walked up and stood his ground as he looked at him Steel and Ayanna. "Yes?"

Ayanna spoke again, this time with a little more confidence than before, Steele noticed. "I wished to speak with the leader of the pack please."

"You are speaking to him. I am Nava."

"Very well then, Nava. I am … Ayanna and this is Steele. We wanted to ask why your pack as chosen to stay this close to … our owners' homes. It is dangerous unless you've no other choice of a home?"

Nava stared at Ayanna for a moment and then at Steele, making the sled dog very uncomfortable. "I'm sure," the elder began. "That you would understand that Niju here and I had wish to seek a friend of our before our new pack went off for another home. I must ask though why would a sled dog care for what a wolf's actions were…"

"Because she's obviously a wolf herself, Nava! She's probably trying to clear up her own disgrace by pretending to be a dog and wants us to move out!" The large dark brown and bluish gray male wolf with blue eyes yelled out from the back, making Ayanna look down at her paws in shame at being called such. Steele growled, his ears pulling back flat against his head.

"You better watch what you're saying, pup!" he barked, earning a growl back from the same male. "Steele!" Ayanna whispered, pulling the malamute back by his collar. "Think of what you're saying! We're outnumbered three to one! If we engage in a fight, we might as well lose our lives." Steele quiet downed, still glaring at the other male.

"Niju, when I said a dog caring about a wolf pack, I was talking about Ayanna's mate Steele here," Nava clarified, looking back at the same wolf. Ayanna's and Steele's uncomfortable glances at each other however cause Nava to say, "Or… friend."

"Yeah, sorry, but Ayanna's more of a… teacher, for me, Nava. That and she dragged me here." Steele corrected, now very much disturbed of the idea of even wolves thinking that the two of them were a couple. Nava nodded his head in apology with a small smile.

"I am very much sorry for both accounts. And also for Niju's remark. He's still getting used to change and he's still not taking if very well, even now."

A growl from Niju caused a quick glance towards him from both Ayanna and Steele. Now, however, Stele actually took note of how the younger canine looked before realizing he looked rather much like Ayanna. Nava continued. "However, while we will be staying for a while, would you like to join us for an evening? While we will be only temporary neighbors for the time being, getting to know one another is not a bad thing."

Steele shifted a bit uncomfortable. _Okay, okay, this guy is only offering a get-to-know evening. You can say no. You are not even a wolf. You can say no. __**Ah, but what about Ayanna? She is a wolf after all. She might NOT be able to say no like you.**_ Steele looked over at Ayanna, who seemed to be in a battle of her own mind as well. _**Looks like even her inner wolf has some charge left. **__Yeah, but knowing her, she'll let me leave when I want to. __**But would you leave her with these wolves alone without a reminder that she still has a home here?**__ …Well…ok, only if she stays. _

"Steele if you want to go ahead and go back to your owner, feel free to. I'll be here if you need me."

_DAMN IT! _

"No, no, no, no. I don't care if you're a wolf yourself, I am not going to leave this place without you leading me back home or following me back home!"

"Oh, how romantic!" One of the female wolves cooed, mistaking this all for some lovers' quarrel. Steele mentally face pawed himself.

"Dania, there's nothing romantic about any that," Niju mumbled, giving a bored looked at the white female wolf who said it. Dania looked at him and shrugged.

"Says the very one who practically needs a love life."

"I DO NOT NEED A LOVE LIFE!"

Steele leaned over to Ayanna, whispering meekly, "Please tell me your mate was never like that." Ayanna smiled amused at her companion before shaking her head.

"Siku was the exact opposite of me, Steele."

"Oh good, he probably got it from one of his grandparents then, how nice." Ayanna looked at Steele in a confused fashion before shaking her head again.

"Steele and I would love to join you and your pack for the evening, Alpha Nava."

…..

He knew he shouldn't make assumptions, his assumptions were rarely right anyways, but dang it, the Niju pup looked too similar to Ayanna now! In speaking of that very wolf, Steele glanced over to the brown wolf talking to Nava. _If it wasn't for her, I'd be at home in a nice warm little doggy bed with Chewy. __**Do you even hear yourself? And besides, if you'd wanted to go home so bad, why did you wanted to stay here?**__ So that she wouldn't forget about her present life! __**You care for her. **__I do not! I do not care about her! __**You're at a place where a wolf pack is, despite not wanting to be there yourself, just so that not only could she get a chance to let go of her past finally, but also for tonight that she can just take a glance at you and remember she has a life outside this pack! How can you NOT care about her!? **_

The black and white dog shook his head before sitting up. Glancing around again, Steele saw Niju a bit off, much closer to the inner forest. Thinking for a moment, Steele got up and went over to sit beside the dark brown wolf. Silence hung between the two before Niju spoke up. "What do you want, doggy?" Steele looked at him unamused at the nickname.

"Wondering why on earth you're over here when everyone else is back there with each other. Even Ayanna seems to be enjoying herself," he answered, looking back to see his companion laughing at something one of the reddish wolf twins said.

"You and that traitor are there. Or at least you were until you decided to come over here." Steele glared at Niju before breathing in and out for a few moments.

"So," Steele decided to change the subject for a moment. "Nava said that this is you two's new pack, huh?"

"Our last pack went over an ice bridge to follow caribou under the new leadership of a mutt named Aleu," the male beside him growled. Steele suddenly smirked at the name. Looks like he and this Niju guy could get along with something.

"Let me guess, wolf-dog hybrids, fathers' name Balto?"

"You know him?"

"He's the reason why I got stuck on bottom in the town and now working my way back up."

"I hated him."

"So did I."

"Nava thinks that seeing me might help me get over it."

"Ayanna's been listening to me to help me get for of a stress level problem over with."

"I am kind of grateful for it all though. I mean, Nava and I've met Dania and her little pack and I've kind of gotten close with her sister Kiva and all."

"I hate to admit it, but it's kind of nice having Ayanna around. She's… almost the closest thing to a friend I've had for some time."

Both canines looked at each other, two different shades of blue meeting each other. Steele smirked a little, causing Niju to give an uneasy smile back before laying his head down again. The malamute suddenly found himself wanting to laugh at the idea of how similar he and this younger wolf were.

"I still hate him though."

"So do I."

It was like meeting the other side of the mirror. Steele still smirked at this, knowing that this all was probably making Niju uncomfortable. But, hey, might as well go ahead with his little assumption here as well. But first, just to check…

"So, what was your mother like?" he asked, laying down beside Niju. The large wolf narrowed his eyes, as if the uncomfortableness had grown heavier.

"Should I ask why you even care?" Steele chuckled and jerked his head towards Ayanna.

"The Madame has taught me a few things. Talking out some of one's past was one of them."

Niju sighed, and stared back to the rest of the pack. "I thought I knew my mother. It wasn't until Nava told me and 'half' of my litter mates after her death. To be truthful, I thought he was trying to test us or something." Steele raised his head.

"What made you think otherwise?"

"I started to notice the difference my brothers, sister, and I had compared to the pack. Storm was ok, really, he just had markings that were a bit off. Isi, Taku, and I were the big differences. Isi was the second darkest in the pack, second to me really. Taku was too reddish brown with a white underbelly and too faded blue eyes. And as for me…" Niju looked down at himself. "Only a cousin of mine looked anything like me." Steele gave a concerned expression before nudging him. The wolf swiped his paw at some dirt. "I began putting distrust at Nava afterwards for not telling me sooner." Steele thought more a moment, not sure exactly if he should go along with his assumption.

"I may be wrong, but… how about you go look at yourself again and then at the little 'traitor' you happen to not like either?" he said, observing as the young adult did so. When Niju looked at him again, Steele could see the confusion. "It's only an assumption but… Ayanna told me once that she gave her pups up to her sister after her mate's death so that they won't be looked down upon… you pretty much fit the description she gave of the largest pup in that litter. Again, I could be wrong. But… maybe if you go talk to her and the two of you discuss things over a bit, you may be surprised," Steele got up and began to walk away when Niju stopped him.

"Why do you even care?" the wolf glared at him with his blue eyes. Steele smiled and walking off again.

"Again, As much as I still hate Balto, both he and Ayanna have pretty much help me a lot. Things change." As Steele approached Ayanna and the rest of Nava's and Niju's pack, he jerked his head towards Niju. The she-wolf looked confused before turning to look at the younger one. A small frown formed on her face before the expression a guilt caused her to not meet the questioning blue eyes that were trying to meet hers. Steele nudged her cheek.

"I hate to be all cliché here, but… maybe now, or maybe never," he said before Ayanna got up and went over to Niju. The gray and brown female, Kiva, if Steele remembered correctly, raised an eyebrow at the scene.

"What was that all about?" she asked, looking at Steele. The black and white sled dog just smiled and laid down next to where Ayanna had.

"Let's just say it was my way of paying Ayanna back."

* * *

Yeah….. um… No idea where I actually had this idea really. Please review.


	7. Chapter 7

Well, you get the drill. I only own OCs.

Eli H. Lee

* * *

Nava, Niju, and their new pack left during the same week. Either way, with only the amount of time they both had with the members, Steele felt his ears go back as he watched Ayanna sit on the hill in the distance. He wasn't sure how long she had been there, gazing out to where the pack had gone to, but the idea of her sitting there for three days slightly unnerved the malamute. Walking up to her, he felt unsure if it was a wise decision to comfort his friend. _**Oh, so you're finally admitting that you two are friends. Congratulations, thick-head. **__Oh shut it. _

"Ayanna?"

The she-wolf didn't move, the snow sticking to her fur as the wind kept blowing. If Steele hadn't see one of her ears move, he would have thought she hadn't heard him.

"Ayanna, come on."

A twitch of a tail was his response. Steele sighed and walked up next to her, looking aside at her face. Her blank expression didn't surprise him, he's been used to it plenty of time when she often listens to him goon about a race and all. Her eyes however, seemed darker than usual and much warmer. The sled dog nudged her cheek, only to feel her turn her head away.

"You can't just sit here. You stand it, yourself, you wanted to let go of your past and the pack was to be your last way of letting it go! You can't just keep sitting here waiting for them to retu- oof!" Steele's ice blue widen as Ayanna rubbed her head into the thicker fur around his neck. It took him some seconds to register that this was shockingly the only time he ever knew Ayanna crying. She wasn't sobbing, but he could feel the tears running from her eyes and onto his neck now.

"The pride in himself and his own pack, having no fear of death, the fear of change itself… he's so much like his father…"

Steele's ears went back before giving a look of concern and looking down at her with a little more of a joking look added. "Actually, I was under the idea that Niju took more after you, really." He smiled when he heard her chuckled.

"I guess he took only Siku's coloration in looks," she replied, a small smile forming on her face. Steele's on the other err… paw, started to fade a bit. If Ayanna had noticed, she definitely didn't show it. "He'd be so proud of him…"

….

"Where is he? He was supposed to be here 30 minutes ago," Sonya barked, pacing back and forth in the broiler room as Alpha kept watch at the door.

"Please, _Madame_, I am sure zhat our dear friend _Monsieur _Steele will be here soon!"

Sonya's glare to Tenino made him go for a quick retreat behind Tupit, the Saint Bernard already taking a small nap from the waiting. Beside the huge dog, Coal and Salina were fighting over an over chewed on bone while Tony just kept scratching his ears.

"Zenino has point, Sonya," Alpha began only for Tenino to lift his head and give a frown.

"It is Tenino!"

"Vhatever. Steele vill no doubt come. He probably has another stupid excuse again." The chow-husky mix left his post at the door and went over next to Sonya, nudging her with his rather short snout. Sonya looked at him, still with her angry pouty expression before smiling dearly at him.

"True, darling. I really should be used to all this by now." She gave him a nuzzle earning stares from the twins, Tony, and a mix of a bored expression from Tenino before he laid down on Tupit's fur comfortably.

"Oh, I envy zee missing _monsieur. _Granted I vould very much be likely to be stuck with _Mademoiselle _Ayanna, but that'd probably be better for _moi_ than here," he whispered. However, his words did not go unnoticed. At least by Tony.

"Ayanna? That wolf-dog girl? Steele's with her?"

Everyone turned their gaze to Tenino, waiting for a confirmation on this information. "Well, I cannot be very well sure right now, but zey have been seeing each ozher a lot lately." By this time Tupit woke up suddenly sleepily.

"Wha- what's going on?"

"Steele's in a relationship with Ayan- Wait, is he in a relationship with her?" Coal looked at Tenino while asking the latter part. Tenino made a struggling face.

"The _monsieur, _he kept denying, but he seems very much the sensitive aboot her. And it is zee rumor of zee zown."

"Steele's in a relationship with Ayanna!" Salina barked, finishing her twin brother's exclamation. Tupit's eyes grew wide, though due to his massive fur, it was hard to see the expression of his mouth.

"No, with his taste in females?"

"I vill not deny, zhere is talk of zhem that I remember," Alpha said, a thinking expression being placed on his face as Sonya stayed nuzzled against him. "But zalk can be misunderstood."

"Alpha's right. Rumors can be rumors. Though if they are true…" she spoke, giving a more understanding and thoughtful expression that was very rarely given in front of her team.

"How can these rumors not be true?!" Tony exclaimed while giving a gleeful childish smile. "They're practically perfect for each other! Sure Ayanna's no looker, and she does have a smile that makes me shudder, and she really isn't friendly, but… um….." Tony soon began think on what he did know about Ayanna that was positive as everyone gave him a black expression. "Um…. she has… pretty eyes?"

Sonya rolled her eyes and Alpha gave an unimpressed frown. Coal and Salina both shrugged as Tupit whispered in Tenino's ear, "Two bones on either Sonya, Alpha, Steele, or all three decking him on this trip." Tenino smirked and whispered back, "Make it _cept_, _mon ami._"

"Well, they're both crabby, for one." Salina pointed out.

"Contrariwise, they're both not pleasant. Not no how," Coal remarked, earning a few nods from the others. The door to the boiler room soon flung open however, revealing Steele entering and walking towards them.

"Sorry I'm late again. Was out… um… busy. Again."

"In all other words, you're neither on time nor earlier due to not wanting to leave your girlfriend," Salina smirked, wagging her tail as she stepped on the bone she and her brother had been fighting over earlier and grabbed it in her mouth. Steele paused as he reached the furnace.

"Gi- girl – girlfriend?"

"Oh come on now, Tenino told us all about you and Ayanna, Steele old pal."

If looks could kill, Tenino might as well have been friend up French fry gone wrong. The canine in question gave an unsure grin as he hide more behind Tupit, hoping for protection by his big fluffy friend.

"There's nothing between Ayanna and I. How many time do I have to tell you, Te-"

"But she is the reason why you were late, right?" Sonya asked, a small glint in her eyes.

Steele looked aside, suddenly taking interest in a nearby flicker of the flames. "She was dealing with some… family problems."

"So you were vith her?" Alpha smirked knowingly. Steele gave a small scowl before flicking a small pebble away.

"What sort of family problems?" Tony asked, always interested and curious of other's problems. Steele sat down, still not looking at any of them.

"None of your concern."

"Come on, tell."

"No."

"Tell."

"Tell, now," Alpha commanded. Steele's face soon began to look like he was holding back a growl as he turned away from the group and towards the door.

"It's only between her and me. She's just dealing with some family problems. That's all I'm telling you all. Now if that's all you're going to ask of me, I'm leaving."

"You get your glory hound behind over here this instance, and stay!" The rest of the team seem to move back a good foot or two away at from Sonya at this outburst. Steele stayed, as if frozen at where he was, and defiantly made no effort to join the rest of the group again. "We're making a trip to Sinuk next week. There's going to be a little bit of … a change in arrangements. Everyone here knew of it already while we were waiting for you to get yourself over here." Steele turned his head towards all of them.

"What sort of arrangements?"

"I'm not coming along."

The words in Steele's mind were the following: _YES! YES! YES! Finally! I am free from the alpha's little pain in the behind queen! Yes! Yes! Yes! Where's the nearest champagne!? YES! YES! YES! __**Ok, number one, you can't get drunk. At least not without getting your owner in trouble. Number two, isn't there going to be a catch in this like always? **__Ok, what part of the situation of Sonya not coming on a trip that's probably going to be three to five days at the least and therefore not joining Alpha on threatening to get me off the team do you not understand? All questions are invalid. Enjoy the relief! _

"And since there's going to be a hunter traveling with us, his dog is going to take Tenino's place as he'll take my place." Steele took note of Tupit's and Tenino's rather unsettled and unease expressions.

"Should I ask why you're not coming, Sonya?" Steele asked, trying to keep a calm face. Sonya looked towards Alpha with a small smile before holding a paw to her stomach. Realization took over as the malamute notice a small bump forming. _Oh sh-_. _**I told you there was a catch. If the trip's next week, she'll be in no condition to make the trip. **__Great. Just great. There's going to be a bunch of mini Alphas and Sonyas. Just great. __**Told you so. **_Then something else came into realization to Steele. There weren't a lot of hunters in Nome. There were a few, but enough that you'd know all their names if you were a canine. "Which hunter are we dealing with?"

"A _Monsieur _Ethan Rogers," Tenino answered. "You know him of course?"

Steele's face couldn't hide the realization this time, because he knew very well that when the son of Ayanna's owner visits Nome, he uses Ayanna as a hunting dog. _**Oh **__crud._

* * *

Hey, something that has somewhat of a plot here. What do you know.

To state something here, like I always do, I based Coal's and Salina's personality on the very loose (note the word loose) idea of Tweedledee and Tweedledum from Alice in Wonderland. More so on Coal's personality. This is actually why they're also in the back of the team, since it is questionable if they're actually all there in the head. There is also some influence of Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter in Salina's character.

Tenino was originally, almost around the time of Chapter 2 in this fanfiction, to be based on Pepe le pew and try to take Steele's place as the lady's man (or canine if you prefer) of the town. Instead I made him more of a gossiper and someone who's not that good at keeping a secret. Oh, before I forget: little trivia here; Tenino has a crush on Tupit. There, I said it. Tenino's gay/homosexual/attracted to other males/ whatever you want to call it, whatever floats your boat. Now if you're not a whole yaoi or whatever you call it fan, than whatever. I could really care less.

Tupit's…. mostly based on my own Saint Bernard, Charlie. Expressive eyes, Mouth/muzzle that's hard to really see if that's what you look for in expression also, loves to pull sleds (still have to figure out where Charlie pulled my purple sled last time it snowed) and almost always lying down. Now granted, Tupit also has a crush on Tenino while my dog Charlie technically has a "girlfriend" of his own that lives right next door.

Alpha and Sonya…. I think I've made them pretty clear. Sonya's really the one that calls the shots, while Alpha's mainly in more charge of racing between the two. They're pretty much Alpha male and female of the team, complete with their own relationship.

Then there's Tony. He's based of off one canine from each of the three trios. Which by the way, has anyone else notice that there's **always** a trio in all the Balto movies? That can't just be me. The three canines in question are Star, Sumac (small brown wolf), and somewhat of Ralph, but more on the former two. I wanted to give him more of a wondering mind and curious outlook at the world really.


End file.
